Leica Geosystems and Headwall Photonics enter UAV imaging agreement

Leica Geosystems and Headwall Photonics have announced a partnership agreement in which Leica will resell and integrate Headwall’s hyperspectral imaging sensors into their airborne product portfolio.

The relationship between the two companies is based on a common vision of incorporating end-user requirements for hyperspectral data into Leica’s mapping solutions and data products, according to a joint statement. One such product that will be incorporated into Leica’s airborne products is Headwall’s Nano-Hyperspec sensor, which is designed for small UAVs.

The VNIR Nano-Hyperspec features a 640 x 480 CMOS image sensor with a 7.4 μm pixel pitch that achieves a maximum frame rate of 480 fps. The camera, which features 12-bit depth, has a 400 to 1000 nm wavelength, a spectral resolution of 5 nm, 640 spatial bands, and 270 spectral bands.

Equipped with hyperspectral imagers from Headwall, the Leica airborne products will be able to accomplish such tasks as mapping features based on chemical composition of objects in a scene. This includes mapping forests by plant species, quarries by mineral composition, and farmland by plant vitality, according to the press release.

Leica Geosystems Ruedi Wagner, Vice President of the Geospatial Solutions Division commented on his company’s new collaboration.

"Headwall offers a complete line of hyperspectral sensor solutions that is well aligned with our customer's application environments and the need for high-quality spectral imaging data. With extremely innovative products such as the Nano-Hyperspec, the Hyperspec sensors offer superior performance for harsh airborne environments."

View the press release.

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